Senator asks for temporary extension of Part B therapy caps exceptions process
Jul 03, 2008
Sen. Max Baucus (D-MT), chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, sent a letter Wednesday urging the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to maintain the exceptions process for Medicare Part B therapy...
Nursing homes challenge regulators’ authority to cut Medicare payments
Jul 02, 2008
Leaders of the largest nursing home association in America are openly questioning the legality of federal regulators’ proposal to reduce Medicare reimbursement levels by 3.3% in fiscal year 2009.
Bush signs bill delaying six of seven Medicaid rules
Jul 01, 2008
President Bush on Monday signed a war-spending bill that delays six of seven Medicaid regulations until April of 2009. The move represents a so-called “win” for nursing-home providers.
CMS decides not to extend therapy caps exemptions process
Jul 01, 2008
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services on Monday told the long-term care community it will not extend the therapy caps exceptions process, which expired Monday. As a result, many residents now will...
Bipartisan letter to Bush: Don’t cut skilled nursing facility payments
Jun 30, 2008
Lawmakers in overwhelming numbers last week expressed their dislike of proposed skilled nursing facility payment reductions of $770 million for fiscal year 2009. A total of 40 senators and 110 representatives...
Senate fails to pass Medicare bill so full wrath of therapy caps to be felt again
Jun 30, 2008
Medicare therapy caps for Part B therapy are scheduled to take full effect again on Tuesday after the Senate failed to pass a crucial Medicare bill before it recessed for the Fourth of July holiday late...
Senate under pressure to pass Medicare bill by Independence Day
Jun 27, 2008
Suspense has been building around passage of a critical Medicare bill and whether the Senate can take such action before the July 4th recess.
CMS to hold conference call on new nursing home five-star rating system
Jun 23, 2008
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services will be hosting an “Open Door Forum” on Tuesday (tomorrow) to discuss, among other issues, the new five-star rating system for nursing homes.
GAO: Some healthcare providers don’t pay taxes but still collect Medicare
Jun 23, 2008
A total of 6%, or roughly 27,000 of all Medicare providers—including nursing homes—collected Medicare reimbursements in 2006 while owing a collective total of more than $2 billion in back-taxes, the...
Nursing homes to pay for their own sprinklers, CMS says
Jun 20, 2008
It is estimated that almost one out of every 11 nursing homes do not contain a sprinkler system, between 20% and 30% do not have automatic sprinklers, and retrofitting will cost facilities roughly $850...